Goebbels: A Biography

Longerich challenges the careful self-portrait that Goebbels left behind in his diaries and discovers firsthand how the Nazi message was conceived....

Excellent Account of the Private Goebbels, But...

By
Derek
on
05-29-15

Berlin at War

By:
Roger Moorhouse

Narrated by:
Derek Perkins

Length: 17 hrs and 16 mins

Unabridged

Overall

59

Performance

51

Story

52

In Berlin at War, acclaimed historian Roger Moorhouse provides a magnificent and detailed portrait of everyday life at the epicenter of the Third Reich....

A unique study of part of World War II

By
Mike From Mesa
on
08-25-17

The Third Reich at War

By:
Richard J. Evans

Narrated by:
Sean Pratt

Length: 35 hrs and 9 mins

Unabridged

Overall

760

Performance

575

Story

568

The final volume in Richard J. Evans’s masterly trilogy on the history of Nazi Germany....

Masterful

By
Karen
on
09-03-10

Hitler's Hangman

The Life of Heydrich

By:
Robert Gerwarth

Narrated by:
Napoleon Ryan

Length: 16 hrs and 14 mins

Unabridged

Overall

154

Performance

135

Story

134

Reinhard Heydrich is widely recognized as one of the great iconic villains of the 20th century, an appalling figure even within the context of the Nazi leadership....

A different perspective on the Third Reich

By
Robyn
on
11-18-16

Hitler

A Biography

By:
Ian Kershaw

Narrated by:
Alan Robertson

Length: 45 hrs and 15 mins

Unabridged

Overall

309

Performance

276

Story

270

Hailed as the most compelling biography of the German dictator yet written, Ian Kershaw's Hitler brings us closer than ever before to the heart of its subject's immense darkness....

Excellent

By
Curatina
on
06-15-14

The German War

A Nation Under Arms, 1939-1945; Citizens and Soldiers

By:
Nicholas Stargardt

Narrated by:
Michael Kramer

Length: 24 hrs and 19 mins

Unabridged

Overall

504

Performance

453

Story

447

A major new history of the Third Reich that explores the German psyche....

Outstanding.

By
Francis S. Brown
on
06-09-16

The End

The Defiance and Destruction of Hitler's Germany, 1944-1945

By:
Ian Kershaw

Narrated by:
Sean Pratt

Length: 18 hrs and 37 mins

Unabridged

Overall

282

Performance

241

Story

236

From the preeminent Hitler biographer, a fascinating and original exploration of how the Third Reich was willing and able to fight to the bitter end of World War II....

Engrossing yet horrifying

By
Liz
on
10-14-11

Hitler

Ascent 1889-1939

By:
Volker Ullrich

Narrated by:
Don Hagen

Length: 34 hrs and 46 mins

Unabridged

Overall

350

Performance

312

Story

311

A major new biography - an extraordinary, penetrating study of the man who has become the personification of evil....

Worthwhile if you haven't read a Hitler biography

By
Joshua
on
11-03-16

KL: A History of the Nazi Concentration Camps

By:
Nikolaus Wachsmann

Narrated by:
Paul Hodgson

Length: 31 hrs and 4 mins

Unabridged

Overall

531

Performance

495

Story

488

In KL, Wachsmann fills this glaring gap in our understanding....

Well performed, but...

By
LostContacts
on
06-14-15

Hitler 1889-1936: Hubris

By:
Ian Kershaw

Narrated by:
Graeme Malcolm

Length: 28 hrs and 9 mins

Unabridged

Overall

288

Performance

265

Story

265

Hailed as the most compelling biography of the German dictator yet written, Ian Kershaw's Hitler brings us closer than ever before to the heart of its subject's immense darkness....

The heart of evil

By
Mike From Mesa
on
01-20-14

To Hell and Back

Europe 1914-1949

By:
Ian Kershaw

Narrated by:
John Curless

Length: 26 hrs and 43 mins

Unabridged

Overall

424

Performance

379

Story

378

The Penguin History of Europe series reaches the 20th century with acclaimed scholar Ian Kershaw's long-anticipated analysis of the pivotal years of World War I and World War II....

Very good, well-educated reader/narrator.

By
M. MCCASKEY
on
01-19-16

Battle

The Story of the Bulge

By:
John Toland

Narrated by:
Dan Butler

Length: 14 hrs and 44 mins

Unabridged

Overall

657

Performance

604

Story

602

Battle: The Story of the Bulge, John Toland's first work of military history, recounts the saga of beleaguered American troops as they resisted Hitler's deadly counter offensive....

incredible.

By
John
on
06-25-15

Heinrich Himmler

The SS, Gestapo, His Life and Career

By:
Roger Manvell,
Heinrich Fraenkel

Narrated by:
Joe Barrett

Length: 11 hrs and 16 mins

Unabridged

Overall

145

Performance

134

Story

133

As the head of the feared SS, Himler supervised the extermination of millions....

Fascinating

By
Jean
on
06-02-16

Publisher's Summary

Based on previously unpublished documents, diaries, notes, photographs, and dramatic interviews with Hitler's colleagues and associates, this is the definitive biography of one of the most despised yet fascinating figures of the 20th century. Painstakingly documented, it is a work that will not soon be forgotten.

Story

Strange Person

What can you say about a man who had this much impact on history? How could a person rise from such humble beginnings to mesmerize and captivate a nation, instilling god-like devotion in his followers and inspiring them to wage war on the rest of the world?

This book provides some of the answers, but the true inner Hitler will always remain something of a mystery. He had an unusual early life: He was born in Austria, not Germany. His father was illegitimate and his grandfather may have been Jewish, no one knows for sure. In early adulthood he aspired to be an artist, but he struggled greatly to make a successful career out of this. His failure resulted in him living, for a time, on the streets, in dire poverty. At this stage there were no obvious signs that he was a monster: He loved and cared greatly for his mother and was heartbroken when she died. Strangely, he greatly respected the Jewish doctor who treated her for cancer.

In World War One, he miraculously survived four years of trench warfare as a lowly corporal. Germany’s defeat was very painful for him, but he enjoyed and revelled in warfare more than any other activity. From this time onwards he was motivated by two main passions: the rise of Germany and the destruction of the Jews. In order to bring this about he needed to rise to power, and to acquire this power he used his extraordinary talent for oration. He was a brilliant speaker. Despite his unremarkable appearance and diminutive stature, he captivated his audiences wherever he went.

He used this talent to harness the German people's patriotism, their fear of communism and their anti-Semitism, persuading them to go to war to create a new German Empire. His method of waging war, ‘blitzkrieg’, was innovative and immensely successful. This military success continued for a while, but it nurtured an unrealistic optimism in Hitler. As the tide of war started to turn, when the USSR and USA joined the fight against Germany, he continued attacking, against overwhelming enemy forces, in the mistaken belief that he could repeat his early successes. This approach, which incurred massive loss of life, continued right to Hitler’s end. In his final few days, even as he could hear Russian artillery fire from his bunker in Berlin, he was ordering counterattacks in the deluded belief that the war could still be won. Finally, when he realized that the war was lost, he committed suicide to avoid the humiliation of capture by the Russians.

Why did he hate Jews and treat them so abominably? I didn't find an answer in this book. The Jews have been persecuted throughout history, so antipathy towards them is not particularly rare, but the extent of Hitler's hatred of the Jews and the appalling cruelty he perpetrated upon them was exceptional and truly shocking. Clearly, he used anti-Semitism as a means of motivating others to fight for his cause, but why he wanted to go as far as to commit genocide is unclear. There doesn't seem to have been an incident in his life where he was badly treated by Jews, so it is hard to identify how this came about.

Listening, for 44 hours, to the story of the rise and fall of Adolf Hitler was certainly interesting, although there are certain feelings of guilt and self-accusations of morbid fascination associated with it! I wasn’t able to completely solve the puzzle of what formed this man’s character and how he succeeded so spectacularly, but I did gain some valuable insights into his life and times. If you are interested in history, this book is definitely worth listening to.

Absolutely fascinating, in depth and jarring.

Where does Adolf Hitler rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This is one of the best audio books I've listened to.

What other book might you compare Adolf Hitler to and why?

This is a brilliant companion piece to "A World Undone" by GJ Meyer [a chronicle of WWI] and "No Simple Victory" by Norman Davies [WWII] in that it gives you an in depth look at how the world got from the First World War to the Second and even supports the premise that both were actually parts of a single World War.

Which scene was your favorite?

Obviously well researched, one of the most jarring statements made in the book was that if Hitler had died in the mid 30s, he would most likely have been remembered as a truly great leader and savior of the German people.

Any additional comments?

Toland goes to great pains to avoid passing judgment on Hitler, Nazis, and so on. And to an astonishing degree, he is successful. The book is vivid, thorough, and detailed. And yet, somehow the 40-some hours have flown by.

About as good as it gets.

As an old history major, I can appreciate how difficult and depressing a subject this is. Toland not only writes very well, interspersing the narrative with interesting quotes and anecdotes, but manages to write very objectively. He succeeds in giving an understanding of what happened and to an extent, why, leaving partisan rancor to others.

Excellent

A very well thought out exposition of the private life of one of history's most loathed tyrants, presented in a calm, thoughtful tone that manages to convey Toland's (almost) perfect impartiality while still holding the interest of the reader. A fascinating listen.

A close look at the most influential villain of modern history

This book explores the story of Adolf Hitler from his early years to his end, acknowledging his sins but not making him into a quasi-cartoon villain like some other books about him seem to love to do. Overall, this is a story of a man who let his anger and indignation take him down a dark path full of death and destruction. A difficult listen, but a necessary one if you want to know the man behind the hate.

Good Read

An interesting and accurate account revealing some detail on lessor known events, interesting insight into Hitler's manner towards secretaries etc.

3 of 4 people found this review helpful

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Axel

10-28-14

only as an audiobook I managed..

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

yes, overall a very good overview over Hitler, quite long but as audiobook manageable. I doubt that I would have had enough stamina to read it myself

What was one of the most memorable moments of Adolf Hitler?

I preferred the early part where the author attempted to explore Hitler's childhood, youth and development.In later parts Hitler's psychology drifts in the background. I guess the author did not want to speculate too much, but I flt the earlier part was more interesting tas it attempted to explore the influences that may have shaped Hitler's inner world

Any additional comments?

I think audible should revise the questions it gives for the reviews, they are not applicable for non-fiction.I liked the narration very much. Ralph Cosham's voice is well suited for non-fiction, neutral but never boring.

5 of 5 people found this review helpful

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Mr

02-11-15

Factual and Flowing account of A Hitler

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes

What other book might you compare Adolf Hitler to, and why?

None to date

What does Ralph Cosham bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

Long audio, Ralph keeps your listening consistent

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

neither

Any additional comments?

You Really get to know what A Hitler was all about, this was my primary goal in understanding, the boy, the man, the unbelievable leader (getting to power) and the lunatic. I would have like to got to know more on his interaction with Generals, his thought process and strategy on taking on Western and eastern fronts

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

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david thompson

05-28-15

Long and informative

This is a lengthy book which I probably wouldn't tackle as a conventional book but found the audio version was easy to listen to in bite size chunks and, for me with an interest in the events of WW11, very informative.Congratulations to the narrator who stuck at it for 40+ hours with an easy to listen to tone.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

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ant

01-29-15

Excellent

Loved every minute of this audiobook. The narration was brilliant. Highly recommended. A A A

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

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Trev_f100

12-26-14

Detailed and well read

An full detailed account of Hitler's Life, dispelling some myths as well as going into detail on some of the lesser known aspects. Very well done.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

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C. Hamilton-welsh

06-21-17

very good

Strong writer and narrator. very interesting and informative. flows well. highly recommended for history buffs.

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FERGUS DOWNIE

03-11-17

Brilliant biography

Beautifully written and narrated. Compellingly relayed small details and insights you don't get in kershaws overrated doorstops

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Mr. Grahamdalton

07-31-16

Very good story about hitter

Very good and the history story was well written and well spoke and kept the person involved in the historic story and kept simple most people will understand

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A. M. Talbot

04-06-16

Compelling reading

This book was a fantastic insight into the mind and actions of the infamous Hitler

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wayne

02-13-16

Outstanding book

I found this book very interesting and the detail and background work gone into producing is amazing.I'll leave it a year and listen to all over again

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Brett Armstrong

05-18-15

Sad but true.

Before I listened to this book I really didn't like Hitler but by the end of the book I felt like everyone around him didn't realize how much help he needed for his mental health.